A few months ago, our local airport bulldozed a section of ancient prairie on their property in order to build an access road. Illinois was home to 20 million acres of prairie for thousands of years, but since this Prairie State was founded in 1818 that number has been reduced to less than 2,300. It’s no wonder, then, that there was a drawn-out legal battle to save a small patch of ground from being paved over.
Bell Bowl Prairie overflows with history. Environmental scientists believe this gravel prairie has existed for over 8,000 years. It was host to many gatherings for the Army when the area was known as Camp Grant. As a Category I Natural Areas Inventory site, it is the home to endangered plant species, as well as the federally endangered Rusty Patched Bumble Bee. Even the soil itself is full of history. In April, conservation advocates began to sift through 20 dump trucks worth of sod removed during construction of the airport road. Their hope is to discover roots, seeds, and fungi which can be given a second life at Cedar Cliff, a newer forest preserve in Winnebago County.
Folks who hoped to save the prairie once imagined this effort as a worst-case scenario. Digging through the dirt on a salvage mission is a whole lot different than maintaining an abundance of life. We do our best to avoid tragedies, but when they happen there’s no turning back. There is this moment when our hope shifts from perseverance into desperation. You might feel that shift when the doctor who has done everything she can mentions the word, hospice. You can feel any time you read an obituary. Here’s the thing, though: No matter what side of the threshold you are on, hope always remains. The outcome we hope for may change, and all other options may be out of reach, but like conservationists sifting through the dirt, hope is always within reach.
As Christians, we put our ultimate, most desperate hope in resurrection. Because of Jesus, we are given new life, and even death cannot have the final say. We are in the business of new life. We remember we are dust, but we also listen to the story of Adam and remember how God brings dirt to life. We can live, then, as advocates of life and second chances for all of creation. And, we can be confident that even when life doesn’t go where we had hoped, that desperate hope we have in Christ Jesus will always remain.
Read more about the sod rescue operation at this link.
Peace,
Pastor Chad McKenna
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